Worse than a stubborn German
by Deezaster82
Summary: ...A stubborn Prussian! Written for the kink meme: Prussia rejects Germany's advances, thinking that his little brother is not really serious about his feelings. Germany sets to prove him wrong. Corrected but pretty much unchanged.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter one.

" That pansy could not say anything and he was so red I thought he was going to explode! That was so fucking awesome! Ah! I'm still laughing my ass off every time I remember how stupid he looked in front of his stuck up guests!"

Gilbert was babbling about things he had done to piss Austria off in the past. Ludwig listened, nodding from time to time. He had heard the same story maybe a hundred of times already, but he let Gilbert talk with no intention to shut him up. Truth be told, he was less interested in his brother's story than in the movements of his pale lips, curving, pursing and lecherously stretching before his hungry eyes.

It had taken a certain amount of time for Germany to realize that he was attracted to his elder brother. It had taken him twice longer to accept his feelings and shut up the little voice in the back of his head that kept reminding him how wrong incest was. All together, he had needed two years to surrender to his own heart's will.

He was now waiting the perfect occasion to confess his feelings to his unsuspecting airhead of a brother.

And tonight, he told himself as hours and beer mugs passed, seemed to be the occasion he had been waiting for.

It was a Saturday night, time to chill after a hard and long week of work. Ludwig had allowed his brother to take him out for a drink without giving much resistance.

And here they were, a few - maybe ten?- mugs of beer down, much more to go. Ludwig was waiting patiently to see that particular glint in his brother's eyes that would indicate that he was drunk enough to bear a love confession.

He felt a tad like a coward for having thought of such a poor setting for his confession. But Germany knew that, contrary to that Madona singer's song, love was much different than a battlefield! And that, for the simple reason that, while Ludwig never lacked courage when it came to fight, it was a much different story when it came to love business.

-" And that spoiled brat was glaring at me so hard, as if he really thought he could kill me like that! Peeeeh! So lame!"

Germany frowned a little, feeling a small ping of jealousy: Prussia had been talking about Austria for the last ten minutes already! Ludwig didn't want to hear about the guy much longer.

-" Bruder! You talk about Austria all the time!" He couldn't help but cut him in his tale. " It's almost as if you were constantly thinking about him! Do you have a crush on him or something?"

Prussia became red at the cheeks, not embarrassed-red, to Ludwig's relief, but more angry-red.

-" WHAT? The hell, West! How can you say such...such...Lame things? I wouldn't want that four-eyed aristocrat even if he was the last person on Earth!" Gilbert defended himself and it could have been interpreted the wrong way if the disgust in his voice and facial expression had not been so genuine.

Germany laughed and ordered a new serving of beer for the both of them.

-" Sorry, East, I couldn't resist!"

-" You're lame!" Gilbert mock-pouted, he was feeling too joyous to really care, thanks to the alcohol in his blood.

A point had been made though, and there was no more talking about 'pansy aristocrat' for the rest of the evening, something Ludwig was more than grateful for.

They talked about random stuffs instead, from what would be the best way to redecorate the house to what they would do for Christmas, which was in less than three weeks from then.

They had more beer but, even if he was now feeling more than tipsy, Germany was yet to find in him to make a move. He was starting to be ashamed of himself for his blatant cowardice and felt like he needed to do something fast before his resolve crumbled.  
Right now wasn't the moment. Gilbert was too busy explaining him how to make the most awesome turkey sauce ever and he wouldn't like to be interrupted.

When he was done, though, Ludwig gave himself a mental kick in the behind and charged.

-" Gilbert, there's something I'd like to tell you" He declared, hoping his eyes looked serious enough even though he was drunk.

-" Okay guys, we're closing now!" The bartender cut in and Germany's shoulders sagged in desperation.

-" That's not awesome at all!" Prussia stated, but he grabbed his coat nonetheless- almost falling from his perch as he did so.  
Ludwig sighed heavily and took his own coat after he had taken care of the whole evening's bill.  
He had not started to walk toward the exit that Prussia pressed himself against him and clung to his arm like a leech.

-" You're obviously dr-drunk, West, I gotta help you home!" Gilbert was looking at him, seemingly wanting to appear genuinely concerned but his goofy grin ruined his efforts greatly. Germany smiled at that: Gilbert would strangle him if he ever told him, but Ludwig couldn't help finding his older brother cute.

-" Yes, you're right." He replied and allowed his brother to hang on him.

-" 'F course Imrite!" Prussia slurred in his brother's coat' sleeve. "Im awesome!" There was some sort of wet noise, meaning he was now drooling on the hard-to-wash fabric.

The travel back home proved a bit difficult for the pair. It wasn't far and they only had to walk ten minutes to get to the bar, but it was much more difficult to make it back home in the state they were: Prussia's wobbling legs didn't want to let him walk straight and his weird momentum was pushing Germany for one side to the other side of the road constantly.  
They were lucky that there was little to no car on the roads at this late hour, otherwise they would never have made it home without accident.

-" Stop zigzagging like that, Wescht!" Gilbert poked him. The albino was now wrapped around his right arm, which was threatening to come lose since he was putting almost his entire weight to it. " You're gonna make me- hiccups- sick!" 

-" I'm not! It's you who cannot walk straight anymore!"

-" Blah! Dun be like that!"

Germany had to admit it, though, the state he was in wasn't far from his brother's. The houses in his hemispherical sight were waving a little, and the white line on the road wasn't straight anymore.

They made it home eventually, only God knows how. Germany leaned Prussia against the door and held him there with a shoulder for the time he needed to find his keys.

When, eventually, he found them and looked up, Prussia's facial expression stopped him and he froze.  
Gilbert was smiling et him in an almost tender way: His eyes half closed, his expression unmistakably happy. He was looking at Ludwig and seemed elated to be with him at that moment. Only then, Germany's drunken consciousness realized how close their bodies really were.

Next he knew, he was kissing the lights out of his brother without even realizing he had moved at all.

A snicker was all the warning Ludwig got before he was attacked by tongue and teeth, Prussia kissing back eagerly and wrapping his arms around his neck. A flock of butterflies invaded suddenly Germany's insides at the thought his brother loved him back and he pressed their mouths and bodies together more firmly while attempting to open the door at the same time.

The door gave way finally, Ludwig kicked it close behind them with his foot and the pair awkwardly moved backward toward the nearest comfortable surface, namely the couch, and fell on it less than graciously in a tangle of limbs and still connected mouths.

They wrestled a moment, the amount of alcohol in their blood making things both difficult and easy: Difficult because their brains were having a hard time commanding their moves and easy because it made Germany forget to worry about dirty shoes scrapping on his precious couch. They broke the kiss for air after a little while, Prussia had managed to get on top and was now straddling his brother, grinning from ear to ear, and Germany was in heaven.

Prussia wriggled his hips, causing their clothed crotch to rub pleasantly against each other and making Ludwig moan.

-" West, you wicked little demon! You should have told me earlier!"

-" Ah..Sorry..I couldn't find a good occasion" Ludwig smiled up at him, blushing.

-" Well, you get it now! Say it!" Prussia said/commanded, his fingers already moving to unbutton Germany's shirt.

-" I love you" Ludwig declared, his feelings obvious in his blue eyes.

Prussia laughed loudly. " Very funny, West! No, you know that's not what I want to hear! Come on, say it!"  
Germany frowned.

-" I'm serious, Gilbert. I love you."

Prussia laughed again but his loud crackles died in his throat when he looked down at his little brother's expression.  
Germany didn't look amused at all.

-" West, seriously, you gotta wake up a little! You are confusing love for lust!"

-" I'm not!" Ludwig tried to argue but Gilbert shut him up when he squeezed his half-hard member through his pants.

-" I still wanna fuck, though! My five meters can use a nice ass like your tonight and I'm sure you haven't gotten any for quite a time, am I right? Of course I am!"

The crude statement made Germany go limp right away.

-" Well, I don't want to 'fuck' thank you!" He straightened himself up and pushed Prussia off him. " I am serious about you..and I'm not going to fool around with you as long as you doubt my feelings...Or yours for that matter."

-" Pff lame!" Prussia crossed his arms on his chest.

And so the evening was ruined, for both of them


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter two

If the previous night's awkward atmosphere had been easily brushed off thanks to their drunken state, the next morning was a different story for the German brothers.  
Prussia had seemingly wanted to drown the subject with more beer and even though Germany had let it slip for the time being, the great turn off and the rejection had not changed his mind. He was still decided to get his point across.  
He would prove his brother that his feelings for him went far beyond lust.

Two years of brain-breaking and sleepless nights of thinking had been enough for him to get a clear understanding of his own feelings. That was love, and he had no more doubt about it!

Convincing Prussia - and get him to reciprocate the same way- could be and would be tough work, but Germany wouldn't back off the challenge. The fact his brother had shown genuine attraction for him, even if only physical so far, was already very encouraging.

By the time they went to their respective beds, Germany and Prussia had been downright wasted, too tired to think of anything else than sleep. The next morning- which had turned into afternoon without them realizing- was, least to say, painful.

There was a chirp, then a groan, then another -louder- chirp and another -pathetic- groan. Prussia lifted sticky eyelashes to see an agitated blur of yellow feathers.

-" Nghhead" He moaned in pain and rolled on his other side, intending the sleep his hangover off a tad longer.  
Something unusual caught his eyes, he blinked a few times and spotted something on his unusually ordered bed table.

A little bag of bird seeds and, oh heaven!, an aspirin in a big glass of water.

He smiled despite his throbbing headache. He was not too sure about what had happened last evening, he has yet to trust weird feeling like 'love' and stuff.

But he was certain about one thing:

West was awesome.

Even though his headache had been as bad as his brother's, Ludwig had awoken earlier than Prussia that morning. He had his own ways to get rid of hangover and that started with a cold shower. It was, least to say, not a nice way to wake up, but it certainly was efficient.

After that necessary torture, he had gotten dressed in casual non-business clothes and had made himself a quick breakfast composed of two toasts with jam and an aspirin. Because he was a considerate little bro and also because he was in love, he had placed a glass of water with an aspirin on the bed table in his- still sleeping- brother's bedroom, not forgetting the breakfast of his little winged pet.

He knew, by experience, that Prussia skipped breakfast on 'difficult' mornings, so he didn't bother to cook for him.

He tidied the house a little, then went to put on sport shoes. Germany being Germany, he wasn't done 'punishing' himself for his excess of the last night and nothing was better than a good jogging to get rid of alcohol toxins messing with one's body.

Forty five minutes of smooth running got him in front of a familiar door. It wasn't a hazard though, Germany rarely ever did things without having something in mind. He had not forgotten what had become a challenge between his brother and him, and he was more than ready to prove Gilbert that his confessed feelings were genuine.

That would not be easy to get the awesome Prussia to admit he was wrong about something, it sounded even impossible a prowess to achieve, for anyone else that wasn't Germany.

Germany loved perfection, but he wasn't as full of himself as to pretend he was perfect. He knew that he wasn't and he was in no way ashamed to admit he had flaws.

Ludwig had to acknowledge one big flaw of his that would prove to be his biggest problem in his enterprise to prove Gilbert wrong: It was the fact that he had no talent whatsoever when it came to the subtle science of courting. If he had to compare, then, Italy was a great warrior!

That's why he had decided to go ahead and ask for help. It was not cheating, since no rule had been decided, and he could really use some advices.

By luck, his best friend was a specialist.

He looked at Italy's door , moved a hand to ring the bell, and braced himself just in case North Italy was not the one who would open the door.

Since the day Romano had thrown the content of the trash can at his face, Germany had learned to step aside quickly once he spotted a curl standing on the 'wrong' side of the Italian's head.

He still gagged at the sole thought of that awful rotten pasta sauce's smell that had stuck to him for days.

-" Ve! Germany!"

Ludwig relaxed, the cheerful tone belonged to the one person he had come to visit.

-" Hello Italia, is your brother here?" Germany greeted his friend with a very small smile, he was still not good at that.

-" No, fratello is at Spain's"

-" Good!" Germany said, smiling just a tiny bit more. " Can I come in? Do I disturb you?"

Italy opened his mouth to answer but a voice rose from behind him.

-" Italie, mon amour, tu viens? le petit déjeuner est prèt et encore tout chaud! Qui est là?" (1)

Needless to ask who or what. Germany couldn't help but raise a brow and smirk a little while Italy blushed lightly and grinned sheepishly at him.

-" Yes Germany, come in...I think there's croissants for breakfast!" Italy said and moved aside to let Germany in.

He didn't go far, though, not once he was spotted by the other occupant of the house.

A wild France, clad in only a silken bed robe, ran toward him with open arms. " Allemagne! Mon grand ami!(2) What a pleasure to see you!"

-" Hello, France" Germany dodged the attack and got the exuberant French man to shake his hand instead.

-" Let's go eat breakfast!" Italy pushed them toward the kitchen hurriedly. " I'm hungry!"

They all took seats around Italy's nice old wood table where an appetizing and generous assortment of French pastries was waiting for them. Germany wasn't really hungry, but he ate a croissant out of politeness.

-" So, Germany, what bring you here on a Sunday morning?" France asked between two sips of his coffee.

-" It's not really morning anymore" Germany remarked.

-" I use to call breakfast time 'morning' regardless of the hour of the day" France shrugged. " So, what's up?"

-" Actually, I need your help."

Italy looked at him, thoroughly surprised. He had never thought that the day Germany would ask _him_ for help would ever come.

-" My help? Really" He blinked.

-" Yes" Germany smiled a bit awkwardly and looked between his best friend and the French nation. " I think I will need help from both of you, seeing as you two are the two most qualified specialists in the matter that concern me.

Both France and Italy suddenly leaned over the table toward him.

-" Go ahead!" They spoke at the same time, greatly intrigued.

**Notes.**

**Translations of the French.**

**(1) '' Italy, my love, are you coming? Breakfast is ready! Who's here?"**

**(2) '' Germany, my great friend!"**


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter three.

Some awkward explanations from Germany's part later, Italy and France arboured matching grins.

-" Germany is in love, awww that's so cute!" Italy said.

-" C'est trop mignon!" France agreed with his lover. He showed off white teeth and giggled a little at how adorable Germany was right then: He looked a little lost and ignorant, but that was really charming.

-" And if I get it well, Gilbert cannot admit that you love him even if you downright told him?" France chimed in.

-" No, he doesn't trust my feelings for what I pretend them to be, he thinks that I only lust after him" Germany explained, sipping his third coffee of the day.

Italy frowned " And so...You want to prove him that you are serious about it, is that so?"

-" Exactly, but I need some guidance on effective courting"

France smiled at the way Germany put it. It always had to be business-like with him, even when it came to romance. He could not blame him though, it wasn't as if Germany had a big experience in matters related to love. His usual centres of interest were all work-related ( his secret passion in cake baking was still a well kept secret)

France and Italy exchanged glances, which made Ludwig wonder for how long those two had been involved with each other.

-" I'd start slow if I were you.." France started and Germany hurried to retrieve a note book and a pen from his pocket. " no need to pull out the heavy artillery right away!"

-" Artillery?" Germany frowned, confused.

-" Figure of speech" France brushed it off. " You could start with flowers."

-" And food!" Italy added his own thoughts. " Food is always nice! Too bad Germany's cooking is so bad!"

-"Hey!" Germany protested, insulted even though he know that it wasn't true: It wasn't his fault if Italy liked nothing else than pasta!

Correction: maybe he had come to like French food too as seen by the recent...Change in his social life.

-" But I'm sure Prussia likes the weird sausages Germany eats, maybe he'll be happy if you cook a nice dinner for him or one of these delicious cake of yours..."

-" And if you cook for him, set a nice table with candle and flower petals, that's always appreciated!And wine! Good French wine is a must for a perfect romantic dinner!" France added his own thoughts.

-" Would beer be okay too?" Germany asked, lifting his eyes from his notes.

-" That's awful" France made a grimace "...But knowing Prussia, he might like a one-litre pint of beer more than a glass of fine wine. You Germans crucially lack refinement!"

-" Thank you...I guess" Germany scribbled more notes on his book. "and then?"

-" That's it for now!" France declared. " Now about the details... If you offer him flowers, remember to write some endearments on a little card that you will add to the bouquet. Chose red roses if you can't think of anything else. Red roses symbolise passion and the message get though almost every time!"

-"It would be better if you had them delivered to him instead of giving them yourself" Italy said. " Because I'm sure Germany would blush and do it all wrong!"

Italy's honesty could be hard to bear sometimes, Germany realized.

France smiled and, once again, took over. " Italy is right, because delivery require extra costs and the more money you spend, the more romantic the attention gets!"

-" As for the dinner, you will have some things to keep in mind and a few gestures to learn..."

* * *

The next Monday found Germany in a flowers shop, early in the morning.

He had decided to go out of the house earlier to make sure he'd be there at the shop's opening time so he would be able to place his order before he'd have to go to work.

The instant the shop had opened, he had charged in hoping he could deal with all this quickly since he didn't have much spare time and there was no way he could be late for work, ever!

But, once he had been in and the pretty girl who owned the shop had asked him what he was looking for, he had found himself a bit lost amongst the wide variety of flowers of all sort the shop proposed.

The shop owner, who had been more than a little charmed by the blond German, decided to help him.

-" For what occasion is it?"

-" Er...I want to make someone aware of my feelings..." He explained, looking between his watch, the lady and all the flowers around him.

-" Do you know what kind of flower that person likes?" The girl asked, a little disappointed to hear that the man wasn't available.

Germany thought hard, but he couldn't, for the life of him, remember an episode involving his brother and flowers of any kind. " Hm, I have no idea"

-" Can I suggest red roses then?"

He recalled France's advice about red roses, but he couldn't associate those with his brothers, they simply didn't match. Also, himself had a thing against red roses since a particular disastrous Valentine day back in the second world war.

( he had gotten over Italy's rejection rather quickly after the disaster, soon realizing that his attraction for the boy was simple friendship: He had never been attracted to Italy physically)

-" No...Not roses." He glanced at his watch and realized that he had to leave. " Listen, the best is that you just pick some nice colourful flowers and have them arranged in nice bouquets, I trust you with that. You send a bouquet every day to this address..." He gave her his visiting card, the one where his official title didn't appear. " For ' Gilbert Beillschmidt'..." He quickly scribbled the name on a piece of paper. "...And you'll be adding these to the bouquets." He gave her a handful of light Purple-coloured labels. He had prepared those the previous day. As per France's recommendations, he had written 'endearing messages' on each of the labels.

The flower shop lady stared at him, her arms full of labels and notes.

-" Did you get it all?" Germany asked, seeing her nonplussed expression .

-" Yes, mister, I understand it all...It's just the very first time I get such a request."

-" Thank you and..." He retrieved some notes from his wallet, three notes of 200 Euros amongst them. "...I guess it's not enough but you'll send me the bill by the end of the week, ja."

On that, he promptly flew out of the shop and started running fast to make it up for the precious minutes he had lost.

The flower lady waited for him to be out of sight, went in the back of her shop and counted the money Ludwig had given her.

She screamed in happiness and closed her shop for the day so she could get on with the bouquets making.

Later that day, around 1 pm, the door bell rang and obliged a very grumpy Prussia to get out of bed to answer it.

" That'd better be coffee delivery!" He growled when opening the door, ready to break bones in case it would be a random shit vendor. He got assaulted by an army of odorous petals instead

" Mister Gilbert Beillschmidt?" asked a voice somewhere in the 'smelling bush'.

" His awesome self" he replied, his voice muffled by what seemed to be a big marigold.

-" Flower for you!" The bouquet was thrust further in his arms and the delivery boy- it sounded like a boy- left Prussia like that.

Gilbert pushed the flowers away from his face and looked at it. The bouquet was composed of smelly flowers he didn't recognize ( He was not really a flower specialist) and it was so big it barely fit in his arms.

-" What the hell?" He wondered, bringing the flowers in the kitchen to get a vase. When he placed the bouquet down on the table, a little folded label fell from it. He picked it up and read the words written in blue:

' _If my love for you could be accounted in Euros, then the world could be paved by notes of 500_'

Prussia laughed so much it hurt.

It wasn't signed, but it was obvious it came from someone that had been a little too preoccupied by economy lately, someone who could not forget about work, even when he tried to be romantic ( and failed, obviously) and who was ever so stuck up that he used to frown even when sleeping. .

" Pff, West! You're unbelievable."

* * *

A new bouquet came every day, each one bigger than the previous ones.

Prussia was looking forward to them, for each one was accompanied by a label that never failed to make him laugh.

He placed the bouquets in vases and the labels in his secret treasure box. He re-read them often and even when they stopped to make him laugh, they still made him smile.

Tuesday : " _My love for you is as deep as the pit of the Greek economy_"

Wednesday: " _You give me wings, I feel like an A-386 Boeing_"

Thursday: "_I burn for you so much, I'm going to do more damage than the climatic shift_ "

Friday: " _I need you more than I need beer. Without you I'd be like a wurst without mustard_"

By the Saturday morning, there was so much flowers all over the house that their strong smell started to give Prussia unpleasant headaches.

So he decided to get rid of them his own awesome way. He arranged them and fixed them in one giant flower crown around which he attached a ridiculously big ribbon.

When he had finished his impressing work of art, he went out and placed it at Austria's door step, then he rang the bell and escaped, crackling like a madman all the way back home.

-" Very spiritual!" Was Austria's bitter reaction when seeing the big crown of flower sporting a ribbon saying " To my lost Silesia, with eternal regrets".


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter four

Prussia was still laughing when he came back from his 'trip' into Austrian territory. He went to the kitchen. Pissing off his old enemy always made him hungry.

-" What is so funny?" asked Germany from his spot in front of the stove. He had finally deigned crawling out from the mountain of paperwork under which he usually buried himself during week days.

It was the first time Prussia saw him that week.

-" Oh Hello, West! Nice to see that you are still alive!" Gilbert grinned at his brother, hoping he would forget about his question. " What are you making there? Smells good! Can I have some? I'm damn hungry!"

-" Ah..." Ludwig used his body as a shield and tried to hide whatever he was cooking. " This is for tonight's dinner. But if you want, I can make you some sandwiches."

-" What's for dinner tonight?" Prussia came closer and tilted his head as he tried to peek around his brother's large shoulders.

-" It's...kind of a surprise...And stop trying to look! You'll see for yourself tonight!"

-" No fun!" Gilbert huffed and went to ransack the fridge instead.

When he was satisfied by what he had picked up, not forgetting his bird's own lunch, he declared that he was going to spend the afternoon in his room, play some games and take a nap.

-" Wake me up when dinner is ready!" He shouted from his room before shutting the door.

Germany sighed. He had been nervous to know about Gilbert's reaction to the flowers, but his week had been wild and not in a good way. There had been so much to do that week, so much unexpected events in the world. even if the consequences had been few and minors, they had forced him to work longer and harder than usual. Germany had had time for nothing else, really. The amount of work that had been thrust upon him had forced him to spend three entire days in his town office, he had actually been forced to sleep in a nearby hotel for two -very short- nights

Nothing to help him in his romantic endeavours!

Thankfully, by the look of things, the small crisis was over and he would be able to take care of matters that didn't concern work.

Prussia had said nothing about the flowers.

Germany was anxious, and more so because he could see flowers nowhere. He had checked his brother's room, something he usually never did, but there had been no flower there either. That could mean only one thing: Gilbert had thrown them away.

Probably Prussia didn't like flowers, it was too bad but it had been worth trying. After all, Ludwig could not have known. His first try was a failure, so what? He was not the kind of man who would give up that easily, not now, not ever.

If Gilbert told him he was definitely not interested, then he wouldn't push it further. But as long as it did not happen, Ludwig wouldn't stop trying.

And he was far from done! That night, he would pull out plan B, aka 'romantic dinner'

and if that too didn't work, then he'd go back to plan F and I, namely France and Italy.

Talking about them, Germany really needed to go over the recommendations, details and others 'things that you have to keep in mind' Italy and France had instructed him about. Thankfully, he had noted it all on his notebook and, with a bit of luck, he had enough time on his hands to prepare himself for the evening.

The menu he had planned was quite simple on itself. He had chosen it because it was Gilbert's ultimate favourite and also because Ludwig didn't trust himself when it came to sophisticated cooking.

Germany wasn't as bad as Italy had accused him to be. He knew his way around a kitchen ( More so if it was clean and well ordered) fairly well. Only, he was better at preparing simple things that doesn't require particular skills. He wasn't France, he had never pretended to be a chef either!

Also, Prussia didn't like to have weird stuff in his plate, he liked quantity and simplicity more than quality and was perfectly satisfied with a few sausages sticking out from a plate full of mashed potatoes, as long as there was enough mustard at his disposal.

The evening came faster than expected. Ludwig's anxiety had grown worse as hours ticked by, which had made the time go by agonisingly slowly. Still, when the time came, he found himself not quite ready.

Some of France and Italy's advices had been hard to put into practice, especially the gesture 'etiquette' . Germany had tried but it hadn't looked that good in the mirror, so he had simply given up on that part of his friends' recommendations.

He had not forgotten about the most important details and had focused his efforts on the general atmosphere of the kitchen:

He had replaced the casual light bulbs by some other special ones that made the room's light very dim, which was apparently more 'intimate' (because France had say so). Since it made the room quite dark, he had placed candles on the table. He didn't really like the potential risk it implied to have a source of open fire in his kitchen when there was a gas cooker nearby, so he had brought in a few extra fire extinguishers...just in case.

According to his manual ' Romantic dinners for dummies' , acquired the previous Tuesday, Germany had spilled some flower petals all over the table and had pulled out his finest crockery (that too had been bought during the previous week)

When everything was as close to perfection as he could manage, Germany retrieved the sauerbrat from the oven, carefully poured the sauce over the meat and checked if the spätzle were good enough before he called his brother.

In a way that wasn't romantic at all, mind you.

-" EAST! DINNER'S READY!"

-" Why is there candles on the table? The electricity doesn't work?" Was the first thing Prussia said when he arrived in the kitchen.

-" No...I put candles to make the kitchen more..um...intimate" Germany explained with an awkward smile. Damn, he was nervous as fuck.

"Just..er..Sit down, I'm going to do the service"

-" Okayy" Gilbert sat down and grinned a little, amused by all this. "what's that stuff all over the table?" He picked a petal and frowned at it.

-" Decoration" Germany tried to relax his mouth into a less stressed expression while he filled his brother's plate ( from his right side, as per 'etiquette')

He filled his own plate, put the left overs aside and eventually sat down too.

-" So, is the food good?" He asked tentatively.

-" Ja it good, even though the meat is a tad overcooked" Germany felt sweat roll down his spine unpleasantly.

-" Ah...Sorry" He picked the wine to fill Gilbert's glass but his brother stopped him.

-" Hey, what's that?" Gilbert tore the bottle out of Germany's hand and studied it suspiciously. "Wine? Don't you have beer?"

-" Of course...But I thought that wine would be more..appropriate for a romantic dinner"

-" Ah." Was all that Prussia said, Germany's heart sank a little. " Can I have some beer instead?"

-" Sure" Ludwig mumbled and stoop up to get some beer from the fridge. He was disappointed, but he forced himself to cheer up, the dinner wasn't over yet.

-" You know.." He started, after he had put the wine aside and served his brother a generous mug of fresh beer. " I didn't like the idea of candles at first, but I changed my mind! Do you know why?"

Prussia lifted a brow.

-" Because the candles make your eyes sparkle so beautifully..." Germany finished and made -what he hoped was- a tender smile .

Gilbert stared at him incredulously for a moment, then he burst out laughing, unable to contain himself. " PWAHAHAHAHA WEST! THAT'S SO...SO...why didn't I bring my camera along? That was soooo precious!"

Germany wanted to die here and there, fall into a pit or hide under the table, anything was good to get away from the humiliation.

His little brother's mortified expression made Prussia want to laugh even more, But he calmed down before Ludwig attempted suicide with his fork.

-" Sorry, West, I couldn't help it...That pick up sentence was so cliché!"

-" I'm sorry" Germany managed not to whine. " I thought..well...It worked with that girl in that book I've read...She blushed and..." Prussia was laughing again and Germany hid his head in his palms.

-" Don't get your guts in a twist, West" Gilbert patted his shoulder to cheer him up a little. " At least, I'm not bored! You certainly know how to make a 'romantic dinner' amusing. And even though I find these lame pick up lines hilarious, I like it better when you mix love declaration with economy, it's more...like you"

Germany peeked at him from between his fingers. " Really?"

-" Yeah really!" Prussia grinned at him.

-" I take it you got my flowers" Germany straightened himself back on his chair and drank some beer from his mug.

-" Yep, and loved them!"

-" Where did you put them? I haven't seen them anywhere?"

-" Oh...They have withered, so I had to dispose of them, sorry." He lied for his brother's sake. " But thank you, West, I really appreciated them, and the little messages too."

Germany smiled warily. " I'm...Glad you liked it"

The desire to ask his brother if he trusted his feelings already burned his lips. But he remembered France's 'very important advice'

_Do not push things, let Gilbert come to you first. You'll ruin everything if you get too impatient _

France certainly knew better. Germany kept his mouth shut, for the time being at least.

-" And I like this dinner too" Prussia added. " The sauerbrat is not that overly cooked after all, and the spätzle certainly are delicious!" that made Ludwig smile more.

-" Hey, West, do you know more of these awful pick up lines? I feel like laughing some more"

The rest of the dinner passed in a more relaxed atmosphere and Germany was really thankful for it. Of course it wasn't that 'romantic' anymore, but at least it was a very nice moment spent together, eating and joking.

He had made a little cake for the occasion, some new recipe he had been working on lately. Prussia liked it so much he finished it all and, at the end of the day, Germany decided that his supposed romantic evening had not gone so bad.

According to France's good advice, when the time came for the brothers to go to sleep, Germany didn't make any kind of 'romantic' move toward Prussia. He simply bid him a good night and went to his own bedroom.

TBC

**Notes**

**Sauerbrat and Spâtzle: very tender slices of beef with sour sauce and fried pastas. Its really good.**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter five

Nothing worth mentioning happened in the course of the next week. The Monday, very early, and like any other Monday, Germany went back into his own wonder-work-land, disappearing from the world of livings, and Prussia was left alone in the big house with Gilbird and the dogs.

There was no flower that week, but Prussia wasn't too disappointed since the little funny messages kept coming in one form of another.

Monday afternoon, while he had been walking the dogs in the park, three military jets had suddenly flown over his head. Their unusual flight formation had picked Gilbert's curiosity and he had smiled just a little when they had started to write words in the sky with their exhaust fumes.

_Ich liebe dich, Osten _

Tuesday, he had found a note West had managed to slip in Blackie's collar. _Look inside the kitchen's third drawer_

When he went to check, Gilbert found a cute little chick key-chain and another note saying: _It chirps when you whistle, so you won't lose your keys anymore. PS: I love you more than Italy loves pastas _

He had attached his keys to the chick key-chain right away.

On Wednesday, when Prussia woke up and wobbled sleepily in the kitchen to snatch some snack, - it was past noon after all- he found his 'breakfast' ready on the kitchen table. It was not the kind of breakfast one can hope for, it was much more: Everything he liked had been placed there for him to chose from, even the usually forbidden jar of Nutella.

Between two slices of bread, he found a little paper saying: _I love you so much, I admit that you're awesome. PS: Remember to put the dishes in the dishes-washer when you are done._

And, for once, Gilbert decided he could at least do that.

All those daily attentions didn't let Prussia cold, of course. Even him had to admit that he was flattered by that display of supposedly genuine feelings. Being smothered in gifts and compliments every day was nice and had Prussia look forward to the next day, wondering what would be the next surprise. To West, he thought, all this was probably like a game, a challenge to keep Gilbert impressed a little more everyday.

Prussia smiled, a little bitter, simply because poor West had no idea how he failed at what he was doing,. Germany, despite all his efforts, had missed the point. If anything, he had convinced Gilbert that things were not as West pretended them to be.

Yes, all this 'challenge' thing was nice. Gilbert liked the gifts and laughed at the clumsy messages, but the game remained a game still, and there was some grounds where Prussia didn't like to play.

Love was a serious business. He had known from the start that these matters had to be handled carefully, and one should not trust Love for what it seemed to be before it had proven itself fully.

Gilbert was very thankful for life had once allowed him to know what true love really was.

For him, it had been a promise that had never been broken, a complete devotion and actions that had spoken of true adoration, more than any sweet words could have.

Love had come to him in the form of a faithful servant who had dedicated his entire life to him. A man, a simple human who's eyes had never lied when his mouth had spoken those words of endearment to him. A man who had fought all his life for him, to make him a real nation, to give him a new life. That man had lived for him.

Oh, how he had adored him!

Gilbert would never forget, even if his mourning was over. And he was certain that no one could ever love him as much as then, his king had loved him.

Every day of Frederic's presence at his side had brought more proofs of his genuine adoration, be it in the low or on the crest of the wave of time, and that had been true love.

It wasn't West's fault if he failed to see things that way, since he had never been loved like that...Or so he thought.

The day Gilbert gave his kingdom up for the sake of Germany's future, Ludwig did not understand the unspoken truth behind the fact.

God knows how painful it had been for Prussia to let go of what his dear king had left him, but he had done it anyway. He had given his kingdom to West, along with his heart, but the 'muscles-for-a-brain' brat hadn't got it!

Sure, Gilbert should have told him then. But, at that time, West had been 'in love' with Italy

It had been obvious from the start that Ludwig had been fooling himself. He realized, albeit too late, that his presumed love for Italy had simply been a friendship-kind of affection.

He should have realized that BEFORE it created a diplomatic accident that costed him his alliance with the Mediterranean nation. Seriously, what a stupid idea West suddenly had had to offer that stupid tomato-shaped ring to Italy!

On a more serious note, every time he thought about it, Gilbert was afraid that his West was making the same mistake again, with him. As much as he loved his brother, in every possible ways, he knew he had to be careful. He wouldn't start a romantic-kind of relationship with his brother before he was one hundred percent sure of West's feelings.

He did not want to end up in front of a confused/Sorry West telling him something along the lines of " Sorry, brother, but I realized that I didn't love you the way I thought. I am certain that I'm not in love with you now, because I realized that I have no desire to have sexual activities with you. Please forgive me"

Prussia shivered at that thought, it would be so un-awesome.

Oh, yes he wanted to believe that West's feelings for him were true. But, honestly, nothing West had done so far had proved anything except that he was stubborn and wealthy enough to afford extravagant air shows and a ridiculous amount of flowers.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter six

When Germany re-appeared the next Saturday, he was carrying a big fir tree. Prussia jumped like a string from his spot on the couch when he saw it. He had always loved Christmas and all the traditions that came along the winter hollidays, it made him look and feel like a little kid.

-" Wow! You picked a big one this year, West!" He turned around the tree to inspect it. " That's awesome" He grinned and helped Germany carry the imposing tree in the living room.

The Prussian's enthusiasm made Germany smile. He liked Christmas mostly because it never failed to make Gilbert happy and Ludwig loved to see him like that.

Once the tree was stable in his usual spot, the corner of the living room next to the couch, Gilbert ran upstairs to fetch the decorations. They had like, tons of them, so much that they wouldn't all fit on the tree, as big as it was. And still, they used to buy some more every year.

. It wasn't a problem though, the decorations which wouldn't fit on the tree would be used to decorate the rest of the house. At the end, every room in the house would have a Christmas atmosphere, even Gilbird had his own little red Christmas hat.

Germany and Prussia spent a good two hours decorating the tree and the house together. Ludwig worked as usual, with method and concentration. He hooked the little decorations in the tree until their number was perfectly balanced on every side of it, the garlands were wrapped around the tree at even distance one of the others and each bulb on the light garland was tested carefully before placement.

.

Gilbert was just happy to put the decorations wherever he saw fit, and he was having a lot of fun with that. His pet bird perched on the tv and watched the Germans go about their business, wondering what all that agitation was about. The three dogs huddled together on the carpet were lazily watching with equal disinterest; It didn't matter to them if their masters were strange humans as long as they took care of them, fed them and petted them from time to time.

When West was done with his part, Gilbert came for the traditional Christmas tree inspection. He studied the decorated fir tree with critical eyes and re-arranged some garlands, moved a few baubles and smothered some branches into a more natural position. Eventually, he stepped back and admired their work.

-" That's perfect, West!"

Germany looked at the tree and nodded. " Yes, that's a good work"

Gilbert couldn't help it, he clapped his hands together. " Only one week before Christmas, I can't wait! Hey, West! For Christmas eve, I have a few idea of food we could prepare!"

He escaped in the kitchen a moment and came back with a cooking book that was obviously brand new, not noticing the blond german's awkward expression yet.

" Here, look at this, it look really delicious! Can we try that? I'll do it myself if you want"

Germany cleared his throat and when Prussia looked at his face, he knew already that he wouldn't like whatever his brother was about to say.

" Hm about Christmas eve...um..."

-"What?" Gilbert's smile faltered a little.

-" The chancellor want me to go to that conference about new technology in Japan and I...I...The conference lasts until the 26th of December...So..."

Prussia's smile dropped completely. He looked down and sighed loudly. " Okay, West, I get it. You won't be there for Christmas."

-" I'm afraid it won't be possible, I'm sorry East" He placed a hand on his arm and squeezed a little. " I would have loved to spend Christmas here with you, but it's an order...You understand..I can't."

Prussia pouted. He was more disappointed than angry though. It wasn't as if Germany could disobey a direct order after all. " I understand, it's okay...I'll spend Christmas with France and Spain then, if their Italian lovers allow me around..."

Germany wanted to comfort Gilbert but he didn't know what to say, so he pulled his brother in his arms, all stiff and awkward. " I'm really sorry"

Prussia tensed a moment, he hadn't been hugged by his brother for ages and last time Germany certainly had been much smaller than him. West was a few centimetres bigger than he himself was now, and Prussia's nose found itself in level where Germany's neck, right below his ear.

Gilbert sighed, closed his eyes and, just for a short moment, allowed himself to breath in his brother's smell.

West smelled like warmth and ginger bread and ihome/i and Gilbert had to resist the urge to nuzzles him and bask into his scent even though he loved it.

He willed the blush away from his cheeks and pulled out of the hug. " Don't worry, West, I'll be fine. You gotta do what you have to."

Ludwig remained silent a moment, but Gilbert could see that he had something to say, so he waited patiently.

-" Would you like to go out tonight?" Germany eventually asked.

-" Sure" Prussia shrugged. A simple Saturday outing wouldn't make it for a lonely Christmas, but it was still better than nothing. " The usual place?"

Germany had a little mysterious smile. " No, for tonight, I've thought of something different."

Prussia lifted a brow in curiosity.

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

Note: Hello hello! Thank you for the reviews! This story is already finished and I'm posting the chapters so the last one will be up for Christmas eve.

As I said, reviews are awesome, but I would appreciate a critical feedback on this, so I can improve my writing.

Thanks and enjoy!

Chapter seven.

Later that evening, Germany's car pulled up in front of a place Prussia didn't know about. He had thought, for some reason, that Ludwig would take him to a 'special' place with sexy maids, half-naked men or something kinky like that.

He was surprised though, when he found out that the bar they entered was a normal one. It was a nice place, not too small, not too big, with a dozen of tables and a long bar in front of which were aligned comfortable-looking stools. Next to the bar, there was a stage that was empty for the time being. apart from all that, the place was nothing special.

West's expensive presents had made him hope for more but he brushed his slight disappointment away, thinking like that was too un-awesome for him. He was glad that Germany had given up his exuberances, it was far better like that.

Gilbert spotted two empty stools at the bar and started walking toward them but Germany stopped him and led him to one of the tables instead.

-" I was told this is the best spot" He explained. Gilbert wanted to ask what was so special about that table but he didn't get to open his mouth to speak before West left him there and went to the bar.

Germany talked with the bar tender, a bit too much for Gilbert's liking, then came back to their table with two mugs of beer.

He looked tense, Prussia noticed. He didn't like it when West was like that, this called for a boring and/or awkward evening, which was missing the point of their traditional 'chill out Saturday nights'.

-" So? What do you think about this place?" Ludwig asked with a smile once he had seated himself in front of Gilbert.

The albino wanted to shrug and he almost did, but he took hold of his mug instead. " It's okay...As long as the beer's good" He sipped from his drink. The beer was okay, but it was nothing special either.

-" I like the beer more at our usual place."

-" Me too" Germany admitted. " But I wanted to try something different." His eyes shifted suddenly, as if he had spotted something or someone. Intrigued by the sudden change in his brother's expression, Prussia followed Germany's gaze and saw nothing worth staring at.

-" What...?" He started but Ludwig stood up, trying to be nonchalant but failing. " I need to use the bathroom" He declared then left Gilbert alone.

The Prussian's gaze followed his brother's retreating back a moment, then he actually shrugged and went back to his beer.

Minutes tickled by and Germany was seemingly taking his time. " What the hell is he doing?" Prussia wondered out loud (even though no one paid attention) " must be constipated or something..Would not be that surprising." he mumbled to himself, the lower parts of his face hidden in the beer mug.

All the people in the bar suddenly looked in the same direction and Prussia realized only a moment later that the stage was now enlightened. He, too, looked toward it, he had nothing else to do anyway and, hell, he was bored already.

The heavy dusty-looking curtain opened, a few musicians came on stage followed by a tall man and..

No!

Was it too late to run away? Prussia wondered and stared with dread as his brother walked on the stage and sat behind a drum kit. He looked away from him, blushing in embarrass. One of the musician, the one with the guitar, caught his eyes.

_I'm going to murder him!_ Prussia gritted his teeth and glared at France who replied to him with a charming smile. Gilbert drew in a long breath and observed the other musicians. It didn't came as a surprise when he found out that he knew them ALL!

The violin was Italy, the boy beamed at him as their eyes met. The piano- oh Gott please, not him!- was no other than Austria. Certainly West had paid him MUCH so the stingy man accepted to do such a thing. Violet orbs eyed him arrogantly from behind glasses, Gilbert wanted to die, kill West first, then crawl in a hole and die.

A microphone was placed in front of Germany and, with a small gesture from him, the music started.

Gilbert had his head buried in his hands. He was more than aware that everybody in the bar was having a great time laughing their ass off out of his misery, or pitying him, which was even worse.

Just as he thought that things couldn't become more humiliating for him, Germany...

...Started to sing.

"_Many guys have come to you_ ( Prussia grimaced, what the hell was that song about? And why wasn't it even German?)

_With a line that wasn't true _

_And you passed them by"._

Italy and France repeated the last line in chorus.

Prussia groaned loudly, it was an old retarded song that was sung for lovestruck teenagers during an era he rather not think about. ( The only thing he knew was that no love song had reached him then)

"_Now you are in the centre ring_

_And their lines don't mean a thing_

_why don't you let me try?_"

Italy and France: "Let me try". Prussia face-palmed

Allright, West had a nice voice and, knowing his temper, he had certainly rehearsed this show hard in order to make it as perfect as possible. But? to Gilbert, it was simply too much.

"_Now I don't have a diamond ring_ ( Prussia: Thank gott!)

_I don't even have a song to sing"_ ( Prussia: Yes you have and you should not have bothered)

_All I know is.."_.

France, Italy and Germany started singing together and for the first time in all History, ( this would definitively be the last time too) Prussia felt a tiny ping of compassion for Austria who was suddenly looking like he had eaten his frill and was about to choke on it.

"_La la la la la la la la _

_means I love you_

_Oh baby please now_

_Oh baby_

_La la la la la la _

_means I love you"_

Prussia wanted it over as soon as possible. He was well aware that sky-blue eyes were looking at him hopefully, but he couldn't look at his brother's eyes then, he just..couldn't.

"_If I ever saw a man_

_That I needed in this world_

_you are the one for me" _

(Italy and France: "One for meee" )

"_Let me hold you in my arms_

_Man, and thrill you with my charms._ Gilbert sighed: "I rather you don't do that..please!"

_I'm sure you will see"_

( Italy and France: " You will seee")

"_The things I'm sayin' are true_

_and the way I explain it to you..._ ( Prussia: "….Really suck!")

_Listen to me!_"

_La La La La La La _

_means I love youuuu"_

Germany, who had to be perfectionist in everything, even in his disastrous ideas, suddenly stood up from behind his drum, hoped down the stage with his mike, and kept singing while walking toward Gilbert who, more than ever, wanted to escape to another dimension.

"_La La La La La La_

_Oh I love you!_

_Oh you have to understand now_

_La La La La La La _

_means I love you_

_Come on and take my hand"._

It stopped, thank Gott, it finally stopped. The crowd cheered and Gilbert was certain that they had loved his humiliation more than anything else.

Gilbert lifted his head to see Ludwig smiling down at him, face red and sweat sticking a few of his blond bangs to his forehead.

-" Did you like it?"

He dared to ask! How could he even dare to ask? Gilbert wondered, eyes wide.

-" West...Try to have fun tonight because, once we'll be back home, you'll be dead!" He said with a most serious glare. Germany laughed, obviously taking the threat as a joke.

He sat back in his seat and tried to slick his hair back to no avail. " I thought you would have liked it, you usually like grandiose things"

-" That was not grandiose, West. A big parade with flags, uniforms, horses, chained prisoners and battle drums accompanying a ferocious army tearing through a conquered country is grandiose! This..It was just...So humiliating"

-" Sorry..." Germany said sheepishly. He looked so pathetic that Gilbert decided to soften a little. Okay, this had been one of the most ridiculous thing he had experienced in his life, but Ludwig had tried hard just for him so..

-" It's okay...I'll spare you this time. But please, quit with the show now, West, I don't need any of this. "

-" Does it mean you believe me now?"

Prussia's amused grin morphed into a smaller, far less playful, smile.

" No, West. On the contrary, more than ever, I think you are fooling yourself completely! You are taking this up as a challenge, and I know that you won't give up because you're so stubborn you'd make the world stop turning. But I don't think that you really are 'in love' like you pretend to be. Remember how you thought that you loved Ita-chan? Well, you're doing the same mistake again"

-" It's not true, it's not the same. What I feel for you is different"

-" Of course, I'm your brother!"

-" Does incest gross you out?" Ludwig asked.

Prussia sighed and leaned back in his chair. " No, I don't give a fuck. Actually I think you are hot and I wouldn't mind if you wanted to nail me to the bed"

Germany frowned at the crudeness of the words. Prussia went on.

" But love...That's something else. I don't think you really know what love is, West."

Germany stood up abruptly, blue flames of rage or hurt -Prussia wasn't sure- flaring in his eyes.

-" You know," He tried to speak calmly and steadily. " You could have just said that you were not interested." Germany glared at Prussia and the air between them became so dense that it was hard to breath.

Gilbert glared back. He wanted to tell him that it wasn't true, because it really wasn't, but it would have made things even more complicated.

Ludwig stared at him a moment longer then left, defeated.

They were stubborn, both of them, they would stand their ground until they would get what they wanted. Prussia was convinced that his brother didn't really know what he really wanted and that was the problem here.

He knew that, most probably, people would think he was stupid for not falling on his knees in front of that handsome man who seemed to love him so much.

He had sent jets write a love confession in the sky for him, had covered him in flowers and gifts and had rented a bar and a whole bunch of talented musicians to serenade him. No, they would not understand why he didn't fall for all this.

He was simply not as superficial as he seemed to be.

A small explanation, a little talk, it was all he had wanted from West. If the usually stoic blonde had taken a little of his precious time to stay with him a moment and explain his feelings to him with honest words, it would have been so much better, so much more true than all this.

The only problem was that, if West had plenty money to spent in supposedly grandiose things, he had unfortunately no time to spare for his brother.

TBC


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter eight.

Another of their Saturday evening was ruined, Germany sighed and pushed his empty mug away from him on the counter. He glanced at the bartender and another full mug was placed in front of him.

Two persons came to sit on the empty stools on both sides of the one he was currently occupying, he didn't need to look at them to know who they were.

A little hand touched his.

-" Germany doesn't look happy at all!" Italy's gaze was searching him and Germany offered him a pitiful smile.

" I've seen worse days" He simply said.

-" Things are not going the way you want?" France leaned in. " Why aren't you with Gilbert?"

Ludwig sighed again, long and desperate. " He rejected me, again."

-" Why?" Italy asked, still stroking his hand lightly. Germany didn't mind it, he knew that the innocent gesture only meant to bring him comfort. ( In more than seventy years of friendship, he had eventually learned to understand Italy's behaviour)

-" He told me that I didn't know what love really is and that I was fooling myself into believing I had that sort of feelings toward him. I think the truth is that he doesn't want to be with me 'like that'."

-" He still don't trust you?" France was surprised. He was one of Prussia's close friend and, not to mention, the world's love greatest specialist: If someone could recognize a man ( or a woman) in love, that was him! He could see that Ludwig's feelings were honest and genuine. That left him wondering why Prussia was doing this to himself.

Ludwig shook his head sheepishly and Italy hugged his side. " Poor Luddy!" He nuzzled into him.

-" Italy" France smiled at his boyfriend. " Why don't you go and keep Gilbert company? Maybe the two of you could have a small iconversation/i" He winked to him. Italy replied with knowing small and skipped away from the bar toward the table Prussia was still seated at, doing the same thing Ludwig was doing, namely: getting drunk.

Ludwig felt his blood go cold when he saw Italy talk to Gilbert. " Do you think this s a good idea?" He asked France.

-" Trust him, he knows what he does, I've trained him well!"

-" France, sometimes, when I'm thinking about the influence you have on that boy, I fear for his sanity!"

-" He influences me more than I do, you know" France leaned closer to Germany and looked from side to side to check if no one was listening. " Lately, I have realized...That I liked his cooking more than mine. Can you imagine? The delicious, refined French cooking I was so proud of..."

-" Oh sheisse! I had no idea!"Germany muttered. " Sorry"

France smiled. " You know what? I don't even fret over it. On the contrary, I'm happy. You know why?"

-" No?"

-" Because, when I realized that fact, I had the proof I needed. Now, I know that what I have with Italy is different than with all those guys or girls I thought I had loved before. I know that Italy is the one true love of my life."

Germany blinked a bit stupidly. " I don't understand. What's the relation between pasta and true love?"

France laughed and patted Germany's shoulder. " It's not the pasta, dummy!" Ludwig frowned. " It's the realization that I was able to give up on something for Italy and not mind it at all."

Ludwig was still frowning in confusion, so France continued: " I gave up on my cooking, which was something important to me, for Italy's cooking. The point is, I didn't mind because Italy is more important for me than anything else. I'd gave up everything I have for him."

-" I think I understand..." Germany turned toward his beer again and fell in a thoughtful silence.

-" Hi Gilbert, can I sit here?"

Prussia lifted his head from his glass and tried to focus on the person who had talked to him. Was he that drunk already that Italy's cheerful smile appeared so blurred?

-" Ita..ja sure, sit there if you want"

-" Grazie!" Italy chirped, or was it Gilbird? Prussia didn't know anymore.

As Gilbert didn't seem like he was going to talk any time soon, Italy decided to do it for him.

-" Maybe Gilbert doesn't believe it, but I know that Germany loves you very very much!"

To be frank and direct, Italy knew, was the best way to address a German.

Prussia said nothing.

-" Germany is not good at showing his emotions, not the right ones that is. He can look very angry when he is simply worried and he's really scary when he tries to smile."

Prussia remained silent.

-" But I know that he loves you because, when he talk about you, he always have that very cute smile and little stars in his eyes..."

Prussia stopped staring at his beer and looked at him.

Italy was still talking. " Germany doesn't know what to do to show you how much he loves you, but I know that he'd do far better if he just stopped thinking about it. He was very very bad at football until he started to see it less like a war and more like a game. When he decided to just have fun, he became very good, and then, he won his first world cup!"

Prussia smiled and, in his eyes, Italy saw the stars he tried to hide. He stood up and rounded the table to hug the albino man.

-" Don't worry, Gigil, one day Germany will realize that he's doing it all wrong, he'll do things the right way and then you'll see that he loves you for real!"

Gilbert grinned and hugged Italy back. " Thank you, Ita, you're really awesome!"

He kissed him on the cheek then hopped toward the bar, still drunk but not that depressed anymore. " Hey West! I bet I can drink more beer than you before collapsing" he declared.

Germany lifted a brow at him. " I don't think so!"

-" Would you bet your Ipad on it?"

France and Italy stared at them worriedly. They looked at each other and France spoke. " I don't know about you, mon amour, but the only thing I'd bet on is that we'll have to drive them home tonight!"

TBC


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter nine.

If any of them won the drinking contest that night, neither Germany nor Prussia could remember it the next morning. Germany got to keep his recently acquired Ipad.

They both woke up very late that Sunday, their hangover even worse than the one they had two weeks before. And, if they couldn't, for the life of them, remember what had happened after they had decided to drink their brains out, France and Italy's wise words were still very clear in Germany and Prussia's minds.

Yes, they did remember everything that had been said last evening, but that didn't mean things were clear for them. Germany was still pretty confused. If anything, talking with France had made it even worse. When his hangover had subsided enough for him to be able to use his brain capacities again, Germany kept turning the Frenchman's words in his mind without really understanding how he was supposed to act on them.

As for Prussia...

Well, he was still unsure. Italy's encouragements had brought his hopes up and now he really wanted to believe that West was serious in his advances, enough so their future together could be seen as very promising.

Unfortunately, West sure didn't look like he was totally confident in his feelings ( as proven again by the bothered/Confused look on the blond German's face that Sunday)

So, there was still that nagging fear that their relationship wouldn't last, because of Germany's insecurities. It wasn't much about sex, Prussia realized. He could, if it was really necessary, live without it. But he could not, and would not, stand a break up with his brother. Things would be awkward and un-awesome after that. Prussia thought that it was better not to start anything with his brother if there was a risk to lose what they had now.

Another wall between them, even a proverbial one, Gilbert could not stand it!

Each in their world of thoughts, Germany and Prussia only had little talk that Sunday. As expected, none of it involved the far-too-complicated love matters that occupied their mind.

The day passed, uneventful and lazy. It was spent at snail space between the fridge, the couch and the pharmacy.

They never got bored though, since their hangover kept them busy all day and tired them so much they went to bed relatively early. Nothing unusual.

Ever faithful came the Monday, and winter holidays wouldn't change a thing to the habit: Germany had to leave for work that Monday too.

He didn't have a lot of days off even though he was free to pick them whenever he saw fit. His obvious problem was that he never seemed to find enough excuses so he wouldn't feel guilty to 'skip' on work for a day or more. Yeah, West was that much of a nerd!

Early that morning, it started snowing.

When Gilbert woke up in the beginning of the afternoon, a white and tick blanket already covered everything.

As soon as he saw this, he jumped out of bed and in his winter gears, excited like a kid. Directly, after a rushed breakfast, him and the dogs went out of the house, barking and crackling with delight at the prospect of everything they could and would do with that awesome snow.

They spent almost the whole day out. Prussia made a snowman and attacked his neighbour with snowballs, he started a 'war' with some kids and got the losers to bury Austria's car under a mountain of snow. It was fun, but, at the end of the day, when in front of the fireplace with a cup of warm chocolate, Gilbert felt strangely lonely.

After Monday, the Tuesday passed very quickly and soon it was already Wednesday the 22nd.

That day, Germany re-appeared exceptionally; Prussia was half glad, half surprised to see his brother during a week day, since it only happened on very rare- and urgent- occasions.

He came down a peg when he remembered the fact it was that day West had to leave for that conference/meeting/whatever thingy in Japan. West was home only to pack and say goodbye.

Then he would be gone, for five whole days, and Gilbert would be alone for Christmas. It really sucked! the Prussian would never have expected that his heart would suddenly hurt so much at the thought of being alone.

_Shut up, stupid, you are being lame!_ He admonished himself.

West stepped out of the house, wrapped in a warm coat and a green scarf that strangely didn't remind Gilbert of Russia. The cold painted his cheeks lightly pink as soon as he was outside and that, Prussia thought, made him look even more handsome than he already was. Ludwig gave him a small smile that almost made him melt there and then and squeezed the handle of his luggage.

-" The conference ends on Saturday, but I don't have a flight before Sunday evening, which means I won't be back before next Monday." He explained.

-" 'S okay West" Prussia shrugged. He fidgeted a little to make Germany think he was cold so he would depart quickly and prevent Gilbert to do something stupid.

-" I'll call you...And...Take care, ok? If you organize a party, try to not bring the house down literally"

Ludwig hesitated a moment before pulling his brother into a hug.

-" I can't promise anything" Prussia replied and hugged back. He wanted to kiss West, he wanted it so badly! But all he did was stepping back toward the house. " You better go now, Westy, or you'll miss your plane."

Germany nodded, stood still a moment longer as if he wanted to say something, then turned around and climbed in the taxi that has been waiting for him. " Bye."

And then he was gone.

Never before in his life, that had been already so long, had the days seemed so dull to Prussia.

The days without West seemed long, the time wouldn't pass and the snow did not amuse him anymore. Gilbert was bored out of his mind and, in the same time, he didn't feel like doing anything at all.

He spent most of his time on the couch, watching some DVD he had seen a thousand times already or just stupid soap operas on TV. He went out only to walk the dogs and didn't make it longer than necessary, then he went back to his couch where he cuddled with Gilbird and a few bottles of beer.

There was no snow in Japan.

There was no Christmas decorations either, Germany noted, but the weather was still cold.

He had spent half of the first day sleeping. A twelve hours flight and eight hours of time lag had him completely exhausted by the time he had made it to his hotel. Thankfully, the conference had only started in the afternoon and he had gotten enough time to recover, at least for half a day of work.

The first part of the conference had been boring, nothing unexpected there, even his boss had seemed a little distracted. His boss. He had stared at her a moment: He had only her to thank for being there. Didn't she have a family to stay with for Christmas? Or was she so much like him as to not be able to pass on work, even during Christmas time? Yeah, probably.

Germany sighed. He wanted nothing else but leave his boss here and go back home to spend Christmas- as well as a few days of vacations- with Gilbert. That was not possible, though.

He could never give up on duty. He lived for his 'job', he has been born for it, and he could not turn his back to it.

It was too important!

He lifted his head and crossed Japan's eyes. The little man gave him a weak and polite smile to which he smiled back as weakly. He knew that Japan would have loved to be at Greece's place instead of this conference, but Japan was disciplined and dedicated to his job, just like him.

No, he had no right to leave.

It was only a weak comfort to know that he was not the only one who had to make sacrifices.

Christmas eve came at last.

Gilbert woke up that morning, feeling downright miserable. He didn't know how he was supposed to plan the day, if there was anything to plan at all.

Normally, West would have woken him up relatively early (too early for Gilbert's taste) and dragged him out for last-minute shopping.

Then they would have spend the day preparing for the evening, maybe Italy and France would have come by to snatch some of West's cookies and Stollen. Maybe they would have gone to the Christmas market, all of them together, to drink some Glüwine and see the pretty lights in the decorated streets. After that, they would have come back home to warm themselves up in front of the fireplace, drink some chocolate, waiting for the evening to come.

It would have been fun! After lots of good food and drinks, they would have lounged around in the couch to watch some Christmas TV program, then, at midnight, they would have opened the presents and searched the pickle...

Yeah, they would have done all this, if West had been there.

But West was not there and Gilbert didn't feel like doing any of that alone.

Gilbert did not invite anyone and didn't call France or Spain at their places to ask them if he could come over. He knew that they would be with their boyfriends and he didn't want to be alone with couples.

He pondered, just a short moment ( very very short), the idea to visit Austria and get the pansy guy to make him pastries. But then he thought that, probably, Hungary and her frying pan would eventually come to visit her ex-husband ( still lover) and he'd look like a fool.

At the end, he decided that he would spend Christmas eve in the most awesome company ever: himself.

...And beer, and probably stronger alcohol too.

For a great part of the day, Gilbert stood at the window, watching the snow fall slowly outside. Any other time, he would have been more than a little elated at the prospect to have a white Christmas, but today was different and he realized that he didn't care about the snow at all.

He didn't care about food or good drink either, and he didn't check the fridge to see if he had to go shopping or not.

The only thing he found in himself to do, was to go assist to the midnight's mass. So, when the time was up, he put on his coat and scarf, picked up little Gilbert, equipped him with a chick-sized woollen cloth, so his friend wouldn't suffer from the cold, and went out.

He tried not to think about his friends who were certainly having a great time together with their lovers, he tried not to look at the families he passed by in the street, and he kept telling himself that, after all, he was having too much fun being alone.

But he couldn't help it. He imagined how Romano was probably shouting at Spain that the food or the wine they were having wasn't good enough, even though his pink cheeks and repressed smile were telling otherwise. He thought about France, who was probably not having snow where he was, but who was certainly not giving a fuck, since he got to spend the holy night with cute little Italy.

He couldn't help envying the people he saw in the street, the couples waling hand-in-hand, with kids and.. _Since when did I become a sissy?_ he wondered, only half-heartedly angry at himself.

In the church, he sat a little apart from all the other people. He didn't want to be seen all alone, since it wasn't awesome at all.

He sat there and, as he listened to the choir and people sing holy songs, he found himself doing something he hadn't done for a very long time: He prayed.

" _God, Old Fritz...Santa Claus...If you guys are not too busy tonight, it would be very awesome of you if you could do a little miracle for me tonight, since it's Christmas and I've behaved well this year. Okay, that's true, maybe I have not always been good this year. But you gotta admit I've improved much since the time I used to conquer vital regions and kill peps. Compared to then, I'm quite the good guy nowadays! So, can you please, just for tonight, just for a few hours, do something great and bring my West back home? I will be good, I promise! You know what? If you do that, I promise I'll leave that pansy arist...er...Austria in peace for a whole month, no better, a whole six months! Also, I'll try to come to the church more often, but only if you bring West back, kay?" _

"_Please, please, please!"_ He closed his eyes and let the Christmas song feed his hopes.

The mass ended eventually, and all the people exited the church to go back to their warm houses to open presents with their family. Prussia stayed behind a little, again not to be seen by them. When he finally went out, he spotted a tall man standing alone a bit further from the church's entry, probably waiting for someone.

Gilbert's heart picked up pace suddenly and he grinned like mad. _"Thank you! Oh thank you so much, guys, you're awesome"_

"WEEESSSSSTTTTT !" He ran toward the man and jumped on him, making him lose his balance and fall in the snow.

"Er..." two confused green eyes stared back at him. The man blushed. " Do I know you?"

-" But West!...Wait, you're not my West!" Gilbert blinked a moment, and when he finally realized that the man was not his dear little brother, his heart fell and broke.

He got off the human he had just attacked, mumbled some excuses, then thrust his hands in his pockets and walked away.

He went back to the house, placed his shoes near the fire place to dry them, and went to check the fridge for food. He hadn't eaten anything that day and now he was more than a little hungry.

-" Fuck!" He grimaced at the insides of the fridge. There was beer still ( otherwise, it would have been the end of the world) but there wasn't much that could be used to make food. Prussia took three bottles of beer and slammed the door shut.

-" I guess I will have to call 24/24 pizza!"

He did just that, then went to sit on the carpet, next to the illuminated Christmas tree, with his beers and Gilbird.

He petted his bird and looked at the tree, remembering Christmas of the past. Think of it, not all of them had been nice for him. He thought of the Christmas he had skipped to go to war, alone at first, then with Germany during the first and second world war. After the second world war, he had been taken by Russia and held prisoner by him, a wall and his own closed borders. Russia didn't celebrate Christmas, and during more than forty years, Gilbert had not been allowed to celebrate it either.

All together, he had a few, very precious, memories of spending Christmas with Germany when he was still a cute little guy, and nowadays, West and him had been celebrating Christmas every year since their re-unification, after the fall of the Berlin wall.

Every years, with the exception of this year.

-" We'll have other Christmas, after all!" He told his bird, smiling down at the yellow ball of fluff snuggled in his hand.

He almost jumped when the door bell rang. " That must be our pizza!" He put Gilbird on his hairs, stood up and took his time walking to the door.

-" I warn you! I never give tips!" He declared loudly.

The man standing in front of the door didn't have any pizza, though.

-" What?" Prussia stood there, frowning.

-" I forgot my keys" The man smiled at him a little sheepishly, his pale cheeks were reddened by the cold, but his blues eyes were as warm as his smile.

It took Prussia a good thirty seconds to realize that, yes, it really was his West standing there. He let his brother in and closed the door behind him, still too stunned to properly react.

-" West? But...What happened? Aren't you supposed to be in Japan? Was the conference cancelled or?"

Germany placed his coat and scarf aside and came back to Prussia who was still staring wide-eyed.

-" Frau Merkel must probably be cursing me to hell and back, right now, but I realized that there were things far more important to do for Christmas than attend a stupid conference" Germany smiled at Prussia fondly.

-" Oh?" Gilbert replied a little stupidly. Then, he finally realized.

-" West...You abandoned your mission...Only so you could spend Christmas eve with me?"

Germany nodded, the adrenaline of doing something utterly forbidden made his cheeks warm and his eyes glitter. " Yeah, it wasn't too hard at the end, since I did it with the prospect to spend the evening with you. I'm sorry it's so late already, tough. My flight was delayed because of the sn..."

He didn't get to finish, because Gilbert pulled his head down for a kiss. A sweet, loving, kiss.

The albino kissed his stunned brother a moment before pulling away, grinning from ear to ear. " It's okay, West. You can say it, now!"

" M-merry Christmas?" Germany tried.

Gilbert laughed and lightly slapped the back of Ludwig's head. " Not that, silly!"

Germany's gears shifted in place at last.

-" I love you."

-" I love you too, West." He kissed him again, longer and deeper. And, this time, Germany wrapped his arms around him and kissed back eagerly.

They broke the kiss for air but remained in each other's arms. " Are you serious, Gilbert? I mean...I thought you didn't want..I mean..." Count on Germany to spoil it all! Thankfully, Prussia was too happy to care.

" Stupid West! The awesome me has been in love with you since even before the re-unification! Why the hell do you think I accepted to give up my lands up for a brat like you?"

Germany blushed in shame to have been so blind as to never realize that fact. " I'm sorry...I didn't know"

-" I guess I can forgive you if you spend the next years making it up for it!" Prussia nuzzled Germany's face and neck. The two brothers, now officially lovers, stayed like this for a moment, just happy to be together. Then, Prussia's stomach growled, quite loudly.

-" Hungry?" Germany asked.

-" I was waiting for a pizza" Gilbert replied, his head still buried in the crook of Germany's neck.

Ludwig groaned and looked at him reproachfully ( it wasn't as impressive or as scary as usual, though). " That's all you've planned to eat tonight?" Prussia shrugged. He had planned to drink lots of beer too.

Germany pulled out of their embrace and went to fetch both their coats. " Quick! If we hurry, we might still find real food tonight!" He said, getting dressed as fast as he could. Prussia beamed at him and rushed to get his coat and scarf on as he tried to open the door at the same time.

They started running in the snow-covered street, hand-in-hand and giggling like mad.

Prussia looked up an instant to smile at the night sky. "_Thank you, guys! You truly are awesome!" _

This was, without doubt, his best Christmas ever!

END

Merry Christmas, folks!


End file.
